Laura J. Martin
The Hangman Tree
Release Date: Jan 31, 2012
Genre(s): Folk
Record label: Static Caravan
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Album Review: The Hangman Tree by Laura J. Martin
Acceptable, Based on 2 Critics
Based on rating 6/10
Inspired by the likes of David Bowie, Wu-Tang Clan, and Serge Gainsbourg, multi-instrumentalist Laura J. Martin, formerly a flutist with hip-hop beatmaker Kidkanevil and owner of a beguiling pixie-like voice that makes Björk sound mundane, isn't exactly typical of her Liverpool hometown's music scene. Released through the Static Caravan Recordings label, renowned for their stable of eccentric indie folk talent, her debut album, The Hangman Tree, is certainly more offbeat than Merseybeat, with its otherworldly melodies and medieval production conjuring up a Tolkien-esque fantasy world that is equally magical and disorienting.
Based on rating 5/10
There’s a lot of eclectic instrumentation going on in The Hangman Tree, scouse manic pixie dream girl Laura J Martin's debut album. I managed to identify melodicas, xylophones, a mandolin, some passing geese and what sounds like a typewriter, but for the most part it’s a flute. Flautists making rock/pop albums have to careful not to veer into psychedelic medieval prog rock territory.